Tillandsia caulescens
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Tillandsia caulescens
Species, Peru.
Ken Woods 06/06.
Peter Tristram 11/10. Large form.
Greg Jones 11/18. Large form.
Greg Junes ... "Giant form, ex. Peter Tristram."
Peter Tristram 01/15
Peter Tristram ... "This bronze-leafed caulescens was imported from Knize by Chris and me and has the typical caulescens spike but some clones are quite large and all have stiffer leaves."
Bruce Dunstan 12/21
Bruce Dunstan ... "I've had the plant for years and finally worked out it likes humidity and regular water. Been torturing it for years."


Tillandsia caulescens Brongniart ex Baker, Handb. Bromel. 168. 1889.
Desc from S&D p808-10
Plant flowering to 45 cm long; roots present even in age; stem much branched, to 30 cm long.
Leaves very numerous, densely polystichous, rigid, strict or arching and secund, 10-15 cm long, densely appressed- or subspreading-lepidote throughout;
Sheaths subtriangular, several times shorter than the blades;
Blades narrowly triangular, ca 5 mm wide, attenuate, involute, pungent, usually with a strong median ridge below.
Scape distinct to almost none, usually much obscured by the leaves, terminal, straight or curved;
Scape-bracts densely imbricate, the lower ones foliaceous, the upper elliptic, acute or apiculate, nerved, roseate, more or less lepidote.
Inflorescence always simple and distichous-flowered, linear or linear-lanceolate, acute, strongly complanate, to 14 flowered, 5-7 cm long, 10-12 mm wide;
Rhachis slightly geniculate, strongly 4-angled, glabrous.
Floral bracts erect, densely imbricate, over 3 times the length of the internodes but partially exposing the rhachis, lance-ovate, acute, 15-20 mm long, exceeding the sepals, convex, not at all carinate, subcoriaceous, faintly nerved, glabrous, roseate;
Flowers subsessile, 25 mm long.
Sepals lanceolate, acute, 15 mm long, glabrous, even or faintly nerved, equally subfree or connate posteriorly to 3 mm, posterior carinate;
Petals lingulate, white, spreading at anthesis;
Stamens emerging from the throat of the corolla, shorter than the style; filaments plicate; ovary ovoid-pyramidal.
Type. Gay 1186 (holotype P, GH photo), without exact locality, Andes of southern Peru.
DISTRIBUTION. On dry rocks and cliffs, 500-2900 m alt, Peru and Bolivia.
PERU. ICA: Nataia Abancay, 21 Jul 1940, Vargas 1990 (GH). APURIMAC, Grau: Trapiche Canyon, Oropeza Valley, 22 Jan 1939, Vargas 9788 (F); Abancay: Cunyac, 5 Aug 1954, Ferreyra 9833 (US, USM); Rio Pachaca, 3 Nov 1957, Hutchinson 1725 (UC, US); 29 Sep 1965, Vargas 16572 (US). Cuzco: Allantaitambo, Urubamba, Oct 1925, Herrera 825 (F, GH, US); Hacienda Echarate, Convencion, 4 Sep 1938, Vargas 1161 (GH); Quillabamba, Convencion, Apr 1948, Marin 1202 (LIL); 24 Apr 1954, Rauh & Hirsch P-924 (US); P-941 (US); Rosario Mayo, Convencion, 16 Oct 1968, Chavez 312 (CUZ, US). BOLIVIA. LA PAZ, Sur Yungas: Rio Bopi Basin, Rusby 670 (NY); San Bartolome, Calisaya, 10 Aug 1921, White 536 (NY); 21 Sep 1921, 1068 (K, NY); July 1939, Krukoff 10042 e p (MICH).


Updated 04/12/21